


A Blast from the Past

by fanoftheimagines



Series: Doctor Who Fics [13]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Choking, Episode Related, Episode: s12e01 Spyfall Part 1, Gen, Headaches & Migraines, Timelord!Reader
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-23
Updated: 2020-03-23
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:08:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23280724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanoftheimagines/pseuds/fanoftheimagines
Summary: You’re a Timelord traveling with the Doctor. When you meet an old friend of hers, you can’t help but feel like you’re missing something important.Based on S12, E1
Relationships: The Master (Dhawan)/Reader
Series: Doctor Who Fics [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1674148
Comments: 1
Kudos: 50





	A Blast from the Past

**Author's Note:**

> Request: Anon said: “If ur doing dhawan!master reader requests could you please do one where reader is a timelady who has known the master for a while, meeting O (with or without the doctor) and afierce a while she figure out it’s him. Thank you!”  
> Reader Gender: Gender Neutral  
> TW: Headaches, choking  
> A/N: This is basically a retelling of Spyfall Part 1. The Reader’s Timelord name is the Wanderer because I couldn’t think of anything else. Also, I have no idea how psychic connections between Timelords work, so I improvised.

Being one of the last of your species is a terribly lonely thing. So, when you got the chance to travel with the Doctor, you took it without hesitation. It was nice being around a fellow Timelord, especially after you’d been by yourself since you escaped the Time War. When you left, you lost practically everything, including your more-than-dear friend, the Master. You barely even made it out alive yourself, since you got injured to the point of regeneration upon leaving Gallifrey.

Seeing your old friend was a breath of fresh air. Humans, who you normally spent your time around, could be exhausting. Traveling with the Doctor was exactly what you needed, the excitement and thrill of it all.

Getting forced into a black car with the Doctor and her companions and then said car trying to kill you was not by far one of the weirdest things to ever have happened to you. But it was quickly climbing up there once the head of MI6 was killed and weird humanoid creatures started to attack you. Luckily, the Doctor had a friend, O, who might be able to help with the possible end-of-world situation.

The TARDIS landed with its usual noises and the Doctor rushed out the door. You followed her and Graham out, closing the door behind you. It hit you the second you stepped out. The familiar pull of a Timelord in your mind. ‘It must be the Doctor,’ you thought, pushing the feeling to the back of your mind. It wasn’t unusual to feel her when she was anxious.

“Fancy a cuppa?” a gorgeous voice asked.

Your head jerked up. O caught your eye immediately. He was just as gorgeous as his voice. He smiled at you as you approached.

“That sounds lovely, thanks.” You smiled. “I’m the Wanderer. You must be O.” Something about him made you feel comfortable, relaxed, like you’ve met him before. Strange.

O’s house was filled to the brim with stuff. But the mess and clutter gave it a cozy vibe. You sat on O’s couch, listening to the others talk. Your head ached from the pull. It was strange, the Doctor usually wasn’t so insistent.

* * *

You didn’t figure out what the headache was from until the next day. In that time, those creatures attacked O’s house, killed the two Australian servicemen, and Yaz ended up in place of one somehow. The next morning was spent comforting Yaz and talking with O. While you and Graham were talking with O about the Doctor, your headache only seemed to get more insistent.

At some point, the Doctor came out of the TARDIS, holding a pitcher of supposed iced tea, and asked you to follow her outside. You nodded and waved her off. The second she was out of sight, you let out a groan and pushed your palm into your eye.

“Are you alright?”

You jumped, not quite realizing you weren’t alone. You groaned again. “I’ve just been getting these headaches.” You paused, letting a wave of pain wash over you. “Nothing to worry about, though. I’ll be fine.” You waved him off and smiled. _Brushing off your problems must be a Timelord thing…_

O smiled and extended his hand. “Come on, then. The Doctor’s waiting.” Again, the familiarity was something you couldn’t shake as you took his hand.

* * *

The Doctor found a code. An alien code buried deep within Barton’s company. But it didn’t match any known language in the universe. You checked it twice just to be safe! But the Doctor is brilliant, and synched the TARDIS to the code. Which led you to an image. Which led to you standing in O’s living room in front of a projected image on a dot wall.

O was at your side, his arm brushing yours every once and a while. The Doctor soniced the laptop and the image changed. Only a few dots popped up.

“What’s that? Join the dots?” Ryan asked.

You squinted. “I think it’s coordinates.” The Doctor and you said at the exact same time. She looked back at you and you gave her a smile.

“Coordinates for what?”

The Doctor soniced it again. This time, a map of Earth appeared under the dots. “Locations for those creatures across planet Earth.”

Then, the dots started to multiply, and multiply, and multiply. And your horror grew and grew and grew. There was no way you were going to be able to fight those things!

“Oh! That’s more than just a few.” The Doctor said, her voice held just enough panic to justify your own. The panic almost squashed the headache that lingered behind your eyes.

The companions expressed their concerns and panic as well. Before it hit you. “It’s all in the patterns. Steganography, encrypted code, attacks on intelligence agents.”

The Doctor turned to you and finished your thought. “It’s all spycraft! They’re alien spies embedded here on Earth!”

“No,” O shook his head, disbelief in his voice, “that’s not possible.”

“Spies from where?” Ryan asked.

The Doctor shook her head and spoke before you could answer. “I don’t know. I don’t recognize them. I don’t recognize the language. Or why they’re attacking people.” She stepped in front of the projector. “Or what happened to you.”

“The image is still changing, Doc.” Graham pointed.

The Doctor turned back around and you drew your attention back to the screen. “More layers still being decrypted.” The image changed from one Earth to multiple.

“Oh… Why’s it doing that?” She asked. “I don’t understand. Multiple Earths… what does that even mean?”

“Maybe it’s not multiple Earths?” You said, thinking out loud. “Maybe it’s multiple times?” They all looked to you. “I mean, traveling between universes is difficult to say the least.”

The Doctor nodded. You could tell from the look on her face that she was bouncing the idea around in her head.

“Ok. Ok.” O interrupted. “If you really think they’re spies, we should be asking, who’s the spymaster?”

The second he said that word, your headache became impossibly painful. You stumbled backward and moved to lean against the warmth of the TARDIS. The Doctor looked over at you and you waved her off. “M’ fine.” You mumbled.

The others continued their conversation, but it was all lost on you. You could practically feel the psychic connection. You reached out for it, hoping that accepting the connection would do away with your headache. When the person on the other end accepted, relief immediately flooded you. With a clear head, you could finally think.

Why were your headaches so bad? Nothing like that had ever happened around the Doctor before. In fact, it’d only happened once before, when you were on Gallifrey. The Master and you got in a fight and you cut of connection to him for a few days. Every time he tried to reach out and you denied him, you would get a painful headache. And your headaches only started when you met O. And they only got some sense of relief around him. He was familiar. And, of course, you can’t forget the most important thing. He said the word ‘Master’ and your head almost split in two.

O was the Master. He had to be.

* * *

You dragged him to a hallway inside the TARDIS while the others got dressed for Barton’s party. The grip you had on his arm was so tight you were surprised you weren’t hurting him. Though if you were right, he would hardly care.

“Is there something I can help you with, Wanderer?” He asked as you pulled him to a secluded spot.

You spun around and pushed him against the wall. “I know who you are.”

O’s eyebrows shot up and he seemed confused. The Master always was a great actor. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

You chuckled. “Why didn’t you tell me? I looked everywhere for you after the war! Did you not think I would like to have known you were alive?” You whisper-shouted, pressing a finger into his chest with each statement.

“Look,” He started, pushing himself off the wall. “I don’t know who you think I am, but I’m not him.”

“Stop lying,” You paused. “Master.”

Tension hung in the air. You waited almost impatiently for his next move. Then, fast like lightning, he had you pressed against the wall, his hand around your throat, and his face in yours. “How did you figure it out?” He growled.

“Do you want a list?” You growled in response. “Smart thing, giving me those headaches. Distracted me from the obvious feeling in my gut.” He tightened his grip on your neck slightly. “Master.” You choked out.

His grip lessened. “So what are you going to do? Tell the Doctor?”

You ignored him. “What’s your plan? Have those light creatures help you destroy Earth? And why? Want to get the Doctor’s attention again?”

“Shut up!” He yelled and squeezed your throat again. With every second, it was getting harder to breathe. When you started to struggle, he released you, allowing you to fall to the ground. “What are you going to do?”

You coughed. “I just wanted my friend back.” You took in a few deep breaths before continuing. “Stop whatever your plan is and let’s go off together.”

He leaned forward and sneered “And why would I do that?”

“Remember our past. I loved you. I still love you.”

“You left me.”

“I looked everywhere for you! I searched until I regenerated, you selfish bastard! Where were you? I… I thought you died…” Tears trailed down your cheeks. You didn’t move to wipe them away. Sadness filled your chest. You hadn’t thought about the war in such a long time.

The Master knelt next to you. With surprising gentleness, he cupped your cheek and wiped away the lingering tears. “I’m sorry.” He whispered. “I looked for you too. Someone told me you died. And I…” He pressed his head to yours. 

_His memories flooded your mind. It was an older version. He stormed into his TARDIS and immediately started to destroy everything in his path. Tears ran down his face and he screamed in sheer anguish. Words couldn’t describe the pain you were witnessing. The drums sounded louder and louder as he grew more and more distraught._

You were ripped from the memory as he pulled away. “Please come with me.”

It was quiet as he thought about it. The silence hung heavy in the air. You could only hope that he would accept your offer.

“Ok.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally posted on [ my Tumblr account](https://fanoftheimagines.tumblr.com/).  
> [Click here](https://fanoftheimagines.tumblr.com/post/641870052684185600/if-you-enjoy-my-writing-and-want-to-support-what-i) to find out how to support me.


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